What concept is Von Neumann credited with that was crucial for the development of modern computers?

The correct answer is significant because John von Neumann introduced the concept of stored programs, which allowed both program instructions and data to be stored in the computer's memory. This was a groundbreaking development that laid the foundation for modern computing.

In a stored program architecture, programs can be loaded into memory and executed by the CPU, making it possible to write complex software that could perform a variety of tasks without needing to be hardwired. This model enables flexibility and programmability, which are essential characteristics of today's computers. It allowed computers to be more versatile and efficient since different programs could be run without changing the physical setup of the machine itself.

The other choices, while related to programming paradigms and practices, do not capture this crucial aspect introduced by von Neumann. Stored procedures pertain to database management systems, data encapsulation is a principle in object-oriented programming that organizes code, and object-oriented programming itself is a broader concept that evolved later, building upon ideas like those from von Neumann's architecture.